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For #Trump, #Pence is the pick

It was, by Donald Trump standards, an exceedingly conventional political move. He picked a plain vanilla, although hard-to-the-right, vice presidential running mate.

Donald Trump finally made it official Friday—his vice presidential running mate will be Indiana Governor Mike Pence. Trump revealed his choice on Twitter on a day when the U.S. presidential campaign was overshadowed by the aftermath of the truck attack in Nice, France, which has sparked fresh concern about terrorism worldwide and has reasserted itself atop the U.S. presidential campaign agenda. Trump and Pence will appear together Saturday morning in New York City for the official announcement.

Both presidential candidates quickly weighed in on the Nice attack in television interviews late Thursday. Trump told Fox News, “This is war. We are living in a different world,” and added that he would ask Congress to declare war on the Islamic State if elected president in November.

Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton also condemned “the horrific attack” in France in an interview on CNN, adding that the U.S. and its European allies now face “a different kind of war” against “radical jihadists.”

Trump cited the Nice attack as the reason for postponing Friday’s official announcement of a running mate. Pence won out over at least two other finalists for the vice presidential pick—former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

FILE – House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis.

Conservatives pleased

Republican establishment figures generally welcomed the news that Pence will be Trump’s running mate, citing his reputation as a staunch traditional social conservative who could bring some stability to the ticket. House Speaker Paul Ryan praised the choice, citing Pence as someone who “makes a compelling case for conservatism.”

Several analysts agreed. “Pence will help Trump cozy up with traditional conservatives,” said John Hudak, a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington. “Pence helps a little bit more with social conservatives” than some of the other contenders and “offers some of the government ‘chops’ (expertise) that you typically look for in a candidate.”

Pence was elected Indiana governor in 2012 and previously served six terms in the House of Representatives where he established a record as a traditional small-government conservative who had strong support from social conservatives and evangelical Christians as well.